The present invention generally relates to an integrated automotive instrument panel. In particular, the present invention relates to an instrument panel assembly for the cockpit of an automobile comprised of a cross-car structure that integrates HVAC and flatwire and populated rigid or flexible flatboard electronics into a single integrated cockpit system. The structure provides rigidity and support to the vehicle, provides mechanical routing and anchoring of the electronic and HVAC components and provides heatsinking for the electronics attached to the cross-car structure.
Conventional instrument panel assemblies use a metal or plastic structure as a cross-car beam. Components that service the vehicle, such as the HVAC system or the radio control system, and the wiring associated with them, are packaged into boxes which are then attached to the beam. Specialized bracketry which must be welded or bolted onto the cross-car beam is required to attach the boxes to the cross-car beam. These boxes and the conventional round wires associated with them add cost to the assembly of the instrument panel and inefficiently use large amounts of space within the instrument panel assembly.
The present invention addresses these shortcomings by providing an advanced instrument panel assembly that uses a metal molded cross-car structure that integrates the HVAC system and instrument panel electronics into a single cockpit system.